FIRE THAT DESTROYED ALL SNOW PLOWS IN HENNIKER, NH STARTED IN THE ENGINE IN ONE OF THE TRUCKS

 

FIRE THAT DESTROYED ALL SNOW PLOWS IN HENNIKER, NH STARTED IN THE ENGINE IN ONE OF THE TRUCKS 

February 01, 2015

HENNIKER, NEW HAMPSHIRE

With another snowstorm expected to bring up to a foot of snow in New England, a New Hampshire town might be without snow plows.

A fire destroyed a fleet of plows in the small town of Henniker. The fire started at the Henniker Highway Department Friday night after the plows finished clearing the streets.

The state fire marshal’s office said five dump trucks, one road grader and several other vehicles used to plow that were stored in the town garage were destroy. Damages could exceed $1 million.

Investigators say the fire started in the engine in one of the trucks and quickly spread.

"This puts the town in a bad spot," Henniker Fire Chief Steve Burritt told the Concord Monitor. "The town has a serious problem for snow removal. Not that there isn't a solution, but it's going to be a challenge."

The garage did have a full fire alarm system, but the fire department was unable to remove the vehicles because of the heavy smoke and flames, State Fire Marshal J. William Degnan said. The building was not equipped with a sprinkler system.

The only remaining heavy equipment were two pickup trucks and a front-end loader, which were parked outside and spared from the blaze. No injuries were reported.

The forecast was calling for 8 to 12 inches of snow on Monday, following the recent blizzard that buried parts of New England under several feet of snow.

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HENNIKER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - A fire destroyed the Henniker Highway Department garage and a half dozen trucks inside, leaving the town without any functioning snow plows just as another winter storm bears down on New Hampshire.

No one was injured in the fire, which started around 7:50 p.m. Friday, January 30, 2015 at the building on a hill east of the Contoocook River. Neighboring communities came through quickly with offers to loan Henniker plows and other equipment to use in the interim.

"It's been a relief to know that our neighboring communities are so willing to help," said town administrator Chris Trovato on Saturday.

Trovato said the town also arranged to use four plow trucks from the state Department of Transportation, another plow from Deering and a road grader from Weare.

Also, Hopkinton has agreed to extend its territory into parts of Henniker, Trovato said.

The loaner equipment at least temporarily restocked the motor pool, which lost five plow trucks and a grader in the fire. Trovato posted a public notice online assuring residents that Henniker would still be able to plow roads as the town considered long-term options.

Selectmen held an emergency meeting Saturday morning and were scheduled to meet again Tuesday night. Plowing was high on the priority list because of the forecast of another heavy round of snow expected to arrive early Monday and go for much of the day.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm watch, saying the storm could dump six inches or more of fresh snow less than a week after a storm last Tuesday blanketed southern and eastern areas of New Hampshire with two feet or more in some areas.

Nate Hadaway, superintendent of the town highway department, said he was also grateful for the offers and assistance that came from nearby communities. He said a colleague from Hillsborough was already helping manage some of the huge snowpiles in Henniker on Saturday, when strong winds added to the bitterly cold conditions and caused more drifting.

"My main concern is being able to maintain these roads in town, so that's what I'm focusing on now," Hadaway said as investigators from the state Fire Marshal's office assessed the damage.

Investigator Chris Wyman said it would likely take a while to pinpoint the cause of the fire.

"At this point we don't believe any criminal intent was involved," Wyman said, standing outside what was left of the six-bay garage. "The fire is still under investigation."

The fire took out the entire roof and the back of the garage. Several of the trucks still parked in the individual bays were visibly charred from the fire and strewn with fallen debris.

"We can get to the exterior of the building. We can't get into the interior of it," Wyman said. "Unstable would be one thing. This is collapsed. Everything is down on the ground and in order to get there it's all got to be pulled out."

The cost of the damage is still to be determined.

Trovato said the town had been contacted by its insurance company, which will send an assessor, likely early in the week. Meanwhile, she said the town was prepared for the next round of snow.

Hopkinton also lost its town garage and big equipment to a fire in June 2012. It took nearly 18 months to rebuild it, a delay caused in part by a disagreement the town had with its insurer over the value of the property.

Comments

Steve Smith said Sunday, February 1, 2015 at 6:26 am

If the garage had a sprinkler system, the damage would have been minimal, but that's what happens when taxpayers cheap out. I'm quite sure the insurance company will require it for the rebuild of the new building.

Donald Armstrong said Sunday, February 1, 2015 at 11:08 am

It's an old building and since the bay doors are constantly opening closing and it does get cold down near the river , -8 last night , you have a higher chance of the pipes freezing. Hopkinton lost their garage the same way several years ago and it took 18 months for the insurance company to pay a lot less than the town expected.